The Wager
by xXxIcePrincessxXx
Summary: "If you help Kaijo win nationals this year, I'll go out with you." It was supposed to be a game; just some words I uttered to keep him from pestering me. I've made a mistake. Tell me what's happening because I don't know. I didn't think it was possible for one person to make me feel so many things at once- happiness, sadness, frustration...What is this? KisexOC, slight MidorimaxOC
1. Phase 1: Get Asked Out

Author's Note: Welcome! I tired my best, I swear. For those of you who don't know me, it's nice to meet you. For those of you who know me, well, hi. Regardless of whether or not you know me though, I hope you enjoy this. Have a wattpad account? I'm there too! Find me at TranslucentWriter.

* * *

Since I was a kid, I've never been a very extroverted person. I suppose that I'm more introverted, but even so, that's not quite it either. I'm just someone who people find difficult to get close to, I suppose. So when I agreed to help manage the basketball club at my school, the last thing I expected to occur actually happened. I've thought about it so often lately, that I'm not even sure of where I messed up. I even asked Kise what happened. I suppose that I'll go over his point of view...

* * *

The plump coach of the Kaijo basketball team walked into the gym with a girl following behind him. This of course, piqued the interest of everyone on the team. Kise glanced at her, expecting not to be too interested. She was short, maybe about 157 cm at most. Not too intimidating. If anything, she was kind of cute in a harmless kind of way. Her dark eyes surveyed the room quickly as she turned to face them as the coach did, her long, dark hair swishing behind her. "This is Tsukino, Kimiko, a first year. She'll be the manger from now on," the coach explained.

Kimiko bowed. "Nice to meet you all." She was actually really pretty. She didn't seem like someone that was easy to get along with though.

"If you have any questions, now would be the time to ask her," the coach added.

"Will you go out with me?" someone asked.

She didn't even bat an eyelash as she replied immediately in a blunt manner. "No."

"Oh shoot, there wasn't even a moment of hesitation," someone else commented.

Kimiko folded her arms. "I won't accept anything about this sort of stuff. I'm here as the manger, so direct only things relating to basketball to me. Anything else will be ignored. Thank you for your understanding." The way she spoke was familiar. Kind of like the way that Kuroko spoke, but with a bit more of an edge. As practice started, Kise watched Kimiko from the corner of his eyes. She was watching them intently and writing quickly on a notepad. He wondered what she was doing.

 _Well, that's how it started anyhow. Pretty normal. I guess I didn't mess up there, at least._ I sigh and shake my head as Kise winks at me. I'm really not sure what to do about this. It's actually pretty troubling. He's been doing this for days. That strange exchange aside, I think back to what he said happened next.

* * *

Kise head out of the locker room, ready to head home, when sounds from the gym caught his attention. He peeked into the gym to find Kimiko cleaning up on her own. She sighed as she gave up on pushing the cart stuffed with basketballs back into the closet. She frowned and glared at the cart before taking in a breath and trying to push the cart again. So she was the kind of person who would try to handle everything on her own, even if she knew she couldn't do it. "Damn it," he heard her mutter. There was a spark of resentment in her eyes.

Kise took this moment to swoop in and help her. "Having trouble?" he asked. He pushed the cart into the closet for her.

"Thanks," she said with a nod. She picked her brown messenger bag up from the floor and slung it over her shoulder.

"Are you headed to the bus stop too?" he asked. She nodded and he grinned. "Let's go there together then." They head out together. As they walked to the stop, it was quiet between the two of them.

She pulled out her notepad once they of the stop and she began to write again. Kise glanced over her shoulder. She was writing about each of the players strengths and weaknesses and then making plans on how to use each member to their full potential! She wrote a few more pages before flipping to Kise's page. She glanced at it and began to write. She stopped mid-sentence though. "What made you stay?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"Basketball. What was it that made you stay?" she asked again. "Everything should have been easy for you with your skill. Boring even." She frowned. "Normally, I don't think that someone would have continued to play sports since it would be so easy. Was it Akashi-san and the others?" She turned to him and looked up at him behind her long, dark lashes. She'd seen right through him in an instant. Kise nodded, too dumbfounded to say anything. "I see," she replied as she nodded to herself. She put the notepad back into her bag and pulled a book out.

The bus came and they went in together. He took the seat next to her's and she didn't complain. He couldn't help but look at her from the corner of his eye as she read. She was pretty even without make-up. He doubted that she ever wore make-up for that matter. Too bad she wasn't taller. She could have been a model if she was. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but after what seemed like a very short time, she put her book back into her bag. It must have almost been her stop. "Would you go out with me?" Kise asked. He'd decided that he liked her, so why not?

She looked at him and for a brief moment, he saw her look at him blankly. Then, her eyes narrowed. "Is this a joke?" she asked.

"No," he replied with a frown. He wasn't expecting to hear this.

"You probably don't remember me, but I went to middle school with you, so I've seen your previous girlfriend. I don't fit in that category," she replied. She stood up. "Don't joke around like this with me. I haven't the slightest interest in things like this." She head out of the bus promptly, leaving Kise in a daze. He'd never been turned down so quickly before.

Or so he told me.

* * *

Damn, in the end, I still can't think of what would have caused him to ask me out. Not only that, but after I turned him down, he asked me out again and again every day following that. Thus, I decided to put an end to it yesterday...

* * *

I turned to Kise as he asked me out again. "I've got an offer for you," I began. "I'm tired of you asking me out every day. If this doesn't end soon, I'll have to ignore you, and that won't work out too well, so how about this? You want to date me and you like basketball; I like wagers," I began. "So let's combine them. If you help Kaijo win the nationals this year, I'll go out with you."

He smiled, but it was different from the ones that I'd seen before. It wasn't some stupid happy-go-lucky one this time. It was competitive and eager. "Alright," he agreed. Even his voice sounded different. He was up for this challenge. His golden eyes glinted and I got a sense of just how smart he actually was. My eyes widened a little and my heart seemed to skip a beat. _Shit. What just happened?_

 _I think that I've made a mistake. One that I can't undo easily._

I've messed up big time, but I plan on correcting this as soon as I can. There's no room for things like this in my plans.


	2. Phase 2: First Outing

Author's Note: Hello again. I was feeling kinda iffy about the second chapter, so hopefully this one is better. It gets better as we continue, I swear. For once, I've actually written a majority of the story instead of writing one chapter each week. Plus, KnB is so much shorter than KHR, so it's easier to finish writing. In any case... Enjoy!

* * *

I glance at Kise as he invites me to go somewhere with him. He even barged into my classroom the second the bell rang grinning and calling my name like the cheery idiot he is. "Hm?" I ask. "Why are you inviting me out?" I gather my books. "If you don't have a good reason for it, I'd rather not. We're supposed to attend practice, after all."

"I mean, we're going to be going against them, so why not?" he asks with a smile.

"'Them'?" I ask. I think for a moment. "Ah, you mean Seirin?" I'd heard from the coach earlier that we'd be having a practice match with Seirin soon.

"Right! Kurokocchi goes there, so I thought I'd go and say hi!" he explains.

"Is that so?" I reply as I sling my bag over my shoulder. I fold my arms. "So? What does that have to do with me?"

"I thought that it would be useful for you to see who we'll be going against," he replies. _I suppose he can be pretty smart every once in a while._

"Scouting, huh?"

He grins at me. "Plus, I wanted to introduce Kurokocchi to my future girlfriend." _I take my compliment back. He's just an idiot after all._

I give him a deadpanned look. "You're awfully full of yourself," I reply as I fold my arms. "That first part of your reasoning was pretty good though, so I suppose I'll take you up on your offer."

He smiles. "Yes!"

* * *

Somehow, we end up at his house though. "So, what are we doing here?" I ask as I fold my arms.

"I thought that it would be inconvenient to have our school bags during the visit, so you can leave your stuff here and come back for it later," he replies as though that notion is completely reasonable.

"What's with that logic?" I ask. _There are so many things wrong with that sort of reasoning._ I'm not sure if I'm right, but I swear that I catch a glimpse of that cunning shine in his eyes again. _This guy..._ I'm somewhat wary about this idea now. The first thing that comes to mind is his possible motives behind his, but the next smile he flashes me is completely innocent. Going against the warning bell that goes off in my head, I take my cellphone out and leave my bag on the floor against the wall next to his. I sigh deeply. "Alright." _I'll just kill him if he tries anything on me._

He smiles at me. "Let's go then!" He looks so cheery and stupid again, I'm not sure what to do.

Just then, a girl walks over and looks at us blankly. "Oh?" she asks. She looks a bit like Kise. His sibling maybe? "Aren't you supposed to be at practice? Why are you bringing a girl home with you?"

I reply immediately, "I'm the manager for the basketball club. Kise invited me to visit Seirin so that I can do some scouting."

She nods, but seems somewhat unconvinced.

"Anyways, we're going," Kise says. He takes my hand and drags me out of his house.

* * *

I look around Seirin with Kise as we get on school grounds. "So this is Seirin. New and pristine, just like I expected." As we walk towards the school building, I can feel everyone watching us and I can hear them whispering.

"Look, isn't he hot?"

"And tall. Wait, is he..."

"The model!"

 _Hm... so he really is this popular, huh? It's true that he is good looking I suppose, but still... Girls are so simple minded. Being good-looking isn't all there is to a person._

* * *

I watch as they play a practice game. Whoever the red-haired guy is, he's pretty good. He seems like he's on a different level from the others. His speed and strength is good. The way he moves shows his experience. There isn't much else I can glean from that short snippet of their practice though. I don't know much about basketball, but even an amateur, like myself, can tell that the maneuver that he just executed isn't very easy to pull off.

I cringe as a group of girls start to surround us. Crowds aren't my thing. "Kise," I start.

He laughs weakly. "Hey, don't look at me with such an irritated expression," he says. "It really hurts, you know? It's not like a meant for this to happen."

I sigh. "Alright, alright," I say. _I suppose that he is right. It couldn't be helped._ I turn to the Seirin guys who have directed their attention to us. "I'm sorry about this."

"It's nice to see you two again," Kuroko says.

"Good to see you," Kise replies.

I nod. "And you as well," I reply. I'm surprised that he recognizes me. We've only spoken briefly before.

Kise rubs the back of his head. "Sorry, really. Um... Do you think you could wait five minutes?"

* * *

Kise deals with the fans and then, they finally leave. "W-What are you doing here?" the guy with the glasses asks. He looks at me, and I guess he assumes that I'm the manager because he asks, "Scouting?"

I nod. _Bingo._

Kise and I walk over to them. "Well, when I heard that our next opponent was Seirin, I remembered that Kurokocchi went here, so I thought I'd come say hi. We were the best of friends in middle school," he explains with a smile.

"Not more than anyone else," Kuroko replies.

"You're so mean!" Kise says. He starts to tear up and he covers his eyes with his hand.

The other team members read an article that featured the Generation of Miracles back when we were in middle school. "Since your second year?" the guy with the glasses asks.

Kise rubs the back of his head. "That article exaggerated quite a bit. I'm glad to be called one of the Generation of Miracles, but I'm the worst of the bunch. They bullied me and Kurokocchi for it all the time."

"That never happened to me," Kuroko says with a flat expression. I stifle my laughter.

"What? It was just me?" Kise asks.

Something comes our way and I flinch, but before I can move out of the way, Kise pulls me to his right as he blocks the basketball that was coming our way. "Ow! What was that for? You should be more considerate, you could have hit her," he says a bit angrily.

Apparently, it was the red-haired guy from before. "Kagami!" his teammates scold.

Kise turns to me with concern filled eyes. "Are you alright?"

My heart is pounding loud enough for me to hear it, but either way, I frown at him and reply coldly, "What are you doing acting all high and mighty? I didn't need your help." I fold my arms.

He laughs weakly again. "Well... I don't know. I said that instinctively. It seems like you're alright though, Kimikocchi."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "And just when did we get so close, Kise? Do tell."

"Sorry for interrupting your little lovers quarrel," the redhead, Kagami, says. I send him a sharp glare and he cringes. Some of his teammates snicker and he clears his throat. "Don't tell me you came all the way here just to greet us. Why don't you play with me a little, pretty boy?"

"Eh? I don't know if I'm ready. But I just..." Kise seems to think about it. _He was able to copy the dunk before, wasn't he?_ "Fine, let's do it. I have to thank you for that display."

I hate to admit it, but I'm interested in seeing how this plays out too. Kise returns the move that he just copied, as I had predicted, and it seems to leave everyone else in awe. I was surprised the first time I watched him play as well. What he does is more that just simple imitation. He takes the moves and makes them his own. That alone leads me to think that he's much smarter than he lets on.

Kagami falls to the ground. It seems that Kise is both stronger and faster than him. I'd say that we're in good shape for the practice game then. At this moment at the very least. Seeing this now, there are only two options for Seirin. Give up or toughen up. I'd say the latter is more likely. I can see it in their eyes.

Kise sighs. "I don't know about his," he says. He seems bored. "After something so disappointing, I can't just leave now." He starts to walk towards the other Seirin guys. "Give us Kurokocchi," he says with a smile. The others gasp. "Come join us," he says with Kuroko. He holds his hand out. "Let's play basketball together again." Another gasp goes around the room.

I have to admit, I'm somewhat surprised too, but I'll let it play out for a bit longer. _So this is what he really came for..._ "I seriously respect you, Kurokocchi. It's a waste of your talent to stay here. Well, what do you say?" _It seems like he's seriously looking for people to help strengthen our team._

"I'm honored to hear you say that," Kuroko starts. He bows. "I must respectfully decline your offer." I smile a little. He's as interesting as ever.

"That doesn't make any sense," Kise protests. "Besides, this isn't like you. Winning was everything. Why didn't you go somewhere better?"

"My thinking has changed since then," Kuroko explains to Kise, "More importantly, I made a promise to Kagami-kun. I told him that we'd beat you, the Generation of Miracles."

"It really isn't like you to joke around like that," Kise replies with a frown.

Kagami laughs from behind us and I turn to him. He's smiling. "What are you doing?" he asks. "I was gonna say that, Kuroko."

"I still have no sense of humor. I'm serious," Kuroko tells Kise.

Kise smirks and chuckles. He looks completely different from his usual cheery-self. I've seen this enough to think that the stupid cheeriness of his is mostly a mask. I like that. It doesn't change the fact that I refuse to date him though.

As the tension in the room rises, the girl, the manager, I guess, turns to me. "Who are you anyways?" she asks.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's nice to meet you, I'm Tsukino, Kimiko, Kaijo's manager," I say. "Although it feels like I'm cutting this short, we should be on our way. I hope that you'll forgive our intrusion." I bow and my hair falls in front of my face. I push it back and turn to Kise. "Kise, you too. You ought to apologize for barging in on their practice and creating the commotion that you did."

"Alright," he replies. He apologizes casually and we head out of the gym together.

"You're such a pain. There are girls squealing around you all the time and all you do is cause trouble," I say with a sigh as we head out of school grounds and towards the bus stop. There are some more girls fawning over him again, but he doesn't even glance at them. "Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, I suppose. It does lead to some interesting things happening."

He cheers, "Yes!"

"What are you getting so excited for?" I ask. "That's only for now. I'll get pissed if you stir up too much trouble."

"Alright, alright. I get it," he replies. He's still grinning though.

"You're a real idiot aren't you?"

"You're so mean, Kimikocchi," he says. He smirks at me. "You're just a tsundere though." He takes my hand and drags me to the bus stop with a grin. "Come on. After you get your stuff, I'll walk you home."

I think I'm starting to see it. The two faces of Kise. I don't mind them though. They're interesting.


	3. Phase 3: Work Together

Author's Note: Ahh, I'm so sorry. It's basically been a whole school year since I last updated o.O I'll be updating regularly from now on though.

* * *

The day of the practice match has arrived. It's just a practice though, so there isn't much to be worried about. If anything we should be worried about showing off too much. We'll have a chance of going against them during Inter-High after all. Giving the game all they've got at this point would just give away our best tricks before we can even use them for a game that counts. This, of course, is just basic logic. I've spent some time learning about basketball strategy as well. If I'm not entirely ready for this game, I will be for the next one. I plan on making sure of it.

As I'm speaking to Kasamatsu about this, I catch a glimpse of Kise running out of the gym once he hears that Seirin has arrived. I sigh. Coach is gonna be pissed. Kasamatsu shakes his head. "That idiot," he grumbles. "Sorry, but could you bring him back?"

I nod. "Of course."

* * *

I let out a deep breath as I finally make it over to them. My breathing is so heavy right now, I can't speak properly. "Kimikocchi?" Kise asks. His expression lights up. "Did you sprint all the way here just for me?"

I say between breaths, "Don't be stupid… Kise… Coach is gonna… be pissed…" I close my eyes and take in a few more breaths before my breathing slowly returns to normal.

"Were you worried about me?" he asks.

I give him a deadpanned look. "I'll get scolded... if I let you do as you please," I reply between breaths. I think that my breathing is finally getting a bit better. "In any case, since we're here, we might as well show them back."

"That's what I came to do!" Kise complains.

"Don't lie," I reply. "You had something to say to Kuroko-san, didn't you?" Kise looks a bit surprised. "Well? Go ahead and say it." I fold my arms.

He turns to Kuroko. "Kurokocchi, ever since you turned down my invitation to join us, I've been crying into my pillow every night," Kise says.

"What's wrong with him?" the glasses guy asks.

I sigh. "Too many things to list."

"Just show us the way," Kagami says irritably.

"I'm so sad, Kurokocchi," Kise complains. "This is too much rejection at once. I can't even say that not even a girl has turned me down anymore."

I chuckle. Kagami was completely ignored. "Could you please stop being so sarcastic?" Kuroko asks.

Kise's eyes narrow, and just like that, he goes from smiling cheerily to smirking. My heart skips a beat again. _Shiittt… That change gets me every time. I ought to just get used to it already._ "I'm interested to know more about the guy who's making Kurokocchi say those things. He starts to walk past Kagami and towards me. "I don't care much about being called the Generation of Miracles, but I can't ignore such an obvious challenge. I'm not mature enough to let it slide. Sorry, but I'm going to crush you with everything that I have." The way he says everything is so serious that I'm not sure how to react.

Kagami smirks. "Sounds good," he replies.

"Kimikocchi, let's go," Kise says.

"R-right…" I say slowly. I'm kind of shaken up by Kise's sudden seriousness. I turn to the Seirin guys. "If you'll follow us this way." As I walk, I watch Kise's back. _That was completely different from usual..._

* * *

We head into the gym and Kise says, "This is it." I feel bad since the coach didn't take them seriously enough to use the full court.

Seirin's coach asks, "We're playing on a half court?" She folds her arms. "The other side is being used for practice?"

Coach walks by and looks up from his clipboard. "Oh, you're here. Welcome," he greets. "I'm Coach Takeuchi." He looks around. "Which one of you is the coach?" he asks.

"That's me," Aida replies.

"Huh? You?" Coach exclaims, "You're not the manager?!"

She steps forward. "I'm Coach Aida, Riko." She bows. "We look forward to playing with you today!"

"U-Uh, yeah…" Coach replies.

"So, um… What is this?" Aida asks.

"Exactly what it looks like," Coach replies, "We've only made simple arrangements for today's game."

Aida strains to smile. "Arrangements?"

"There won't be enough to learn from this game to make it worth watching for the guys sitting out," Coach replies.

Adia is just barely holding her anger back now. "I see."

"We're having the other players practice as usual so we don't waste time. Despite the arrangements, you'll be playing our regulars. I hope you won't let us triple your score," Coach replies.

I'm about to say that he's being rude, but someone calls, "Tsukino! I have a question!"

"Yes?" I reply. I duck under the net and head over to them. Well, if this is how coach is going to play it, then I suppose that I'll have to retaliate on my own. No matter how weak the opponent may be, good sportsmanship is important, even if you think that they suck.

* * *

I get sent to run practice, but I steal glances at the match as the other members do drills. I smirk to myself as Kuroko's misdirection shocks everyone. The coach sends me a stern look and I smile a little. It gets better though. Kagami breaks the hoop. It takes everything I have at that point not to burst out in laughter. I chuckle. "You seem like you're having the time of your life, Tsukino…" one of the players comments.

"Of course," I reply with a smile. "The coach looks seriously pissed right now."

"Um, you're kind of scary," the guy replies.

I smirk. "Not at all. I just like seeing karma in action."

"Tsukino!" Coach calls.

"Understood," I reply with a nod. I clap my hands. "Well? You heard Coach. Get the court ready."

* * *

I chuckle as I sit down next to Coach, white board in hand. "Tsukino, if you knew that number eleven had a trick like that up his sleeve, why didn't you say anything?" he asks.

"It's more fun this way, don't you think?" I reply. _Besides, it's your fault for being so rude._ "I assume that you want me to start thinking now?"

"Just do your job properly. You know why I offered you a position as manager, don't you?" he replies.

I nod. "Of course I do." _I've got the brains and the background to handle this job. Now then…_ I chuckle again. "Kasamatsu-senpai looks like he's in a fix."

* * *

After a fast-paced five minute play, Seirin calls time out. I've yet to think of a strategy. All I have is that Kuroko's misdirection will wear off and that Kise's weakness is Kuroko. "What the hell are you doing?! How many points are you gonna let them take?!" Coach yells. "Is the defense asleep? Huh?"

"Sorry!"

Moriyama says, "This isn't easy."

"Yeah, that first-year duo is brutal," Kasamatsu replies. He turns to Kise. "You should be able to handle Kagami, but what's with that invisible Kuroko guy?"

"I'm sorry," I apologize. "I'm still new at this, so I'm not too familiar with strategies for basketball yet."

"It's not your fault. You're picking up on this much faster than most people would," Kasamatsu replies.

"Ah, I do have two things sorted out though. The first thing would be their weakness. The second… Well, let's say that I've finally figured out Kise's weakness."

"What?" Kise exclaims.

"It's no fun if I reveal it right now since they're thinking about it too though, so I'll write it on this paper now and we'll check to see if they say they same thing later," I say decide.

"You're always turning everything into a game, Kimikocchi…" Kise says.

"If they say something else, I'll treat you to dinner," I reply.

Kise grins. "Alright!"

"Ah, but if I'm right, you'll be treating me," I say. I write my answer down and hand it to Kise. "Here. Don't peek." He nods eagerly and puts it into his pocket.

"I'll gladly treat you to dinner anytime you'd like," Moriyama says.

"Oh? Is that so?" I ask. "Well, I fail to see why you would treat me to dinner with nothing to gain, but free food is fine with me."

"Kimikocchi!" Kise whines.

"What?" I reply. Kise pouts at me and I fold my arms. "Anyways, getting down the business, Kuroko's weakness is pretty obvious."

"Ouch. Totally ignored," someone says.

I continue without acknowledging whoever said that, "Kise? Would you like to explain?"

He nods. It seems that he's stopped fooling around. "They won't be able to use their misdirection after forty minutes."  
"Misdi… what?" Kasamatsu asks.

I chuckle. "You've never heard of it Senpai?" I ask. "It's how magic tricks work. It's fairly simple; Even I can do it." I take out a card from my bag. "Watch me carefully," I say as I hold the card in my hand. I throw the card with a flick of my wrist and Kasamatsu's eyes follow the card. I take two steps to the right. "See? You're not even looking at me." Kasamatsu's eyes widen.

Kise laughs. "See? Kurokocchi's using his exceptional observation skills to do this continuously, creating the illusion that he disappeared so he can pass the ball around. Not that he has to do anything special to have no presence. But the more he uses it, the more we get used to it, and it's effect gradually decreases."

I nod. "Well said." I fold my arms. "I'm not too sure about this, but I'm sure they'll be focusing on stopping Kise from scoring, so I say that you should all go with the Princeton Offense."

"Princeton Offense?" Kasamatsu asks.

I nod. "I read it in the book that I picked up the other day. It's used when the teams individuals are all good at scoring." I begin to explain the strategy in detail.

* * *

In the middle of the game, I get a text. "Hm?" I ask. I glance at the text and smile. _Ahh, so it's him…_ I stand up. "Sorry, but I've got an important call to make," I say to Coach. "I'll leave my guesses here." I put my notepad down and head out of the gym. I call him and he picks up almost immediately. "Shintaro?" I ask. "It's been a while. How are you?"

"Kimiko, how's the match?" he asks.

"You're missing all the interesting bits," I reply. "We're nearly at the second quarter. Are you going to make it on time?"

"We'll see," he replies.

"Alright," I reply. "I'll see you later then."

"Yeah," he replies. I hang up.


	4. Phase 4: Begin to Get Along

Author's Note: Ahh, I'm so sorry that I've been away for as long as I have. I'm going to try to get back into a regular updating pattern. The good news is that I finished this story though, so the updates will be pretty quick! Enjoy!

* * *

The game ends, and I must say, it was one of the most interesting basketball games I have ever seen. If this continues, I may just end up enjoying watching basketball. Kaijo lost by two points. Seirin got a buzzer beater on us.

I glance at Kise. He looks like he's in a daze when suddenly, tears streak down his cheeks. This catches me by surprise. _Is he actually crying?_ I think about it for a moment longer. _Now that I think about it, this is probably his first loss._ Seeing him cry kind of makes me want to cheer him up. It's strange. I watch him for a bit longer before going to help clean up the gym. I shouldn't care about him nearly as much as I do right now.

I glance at my cell phone as I get a text. He's almost here. I tell him that he missed the game.

* * *

While I'm helping out with clean up, I get another text and I head to the back of the school to meet up with him. When I get there, I find my green-haired childhood friend, Shintaro, and Kise; It seems that the two of them were talking.

"Hm? So this is where you went, Kise," I say with a sigh as I walk over. "You disappeared so quickly, the others got a bit worried." I add with a grin, "By the way, you owe me dinner," I say.

"Huh?" he asks.

"Don't believe me?" I ask. "Check the paper." He pulls the paper out of his pocket and his eyes widen a little. "Told you," I reply.

"Still playing those games?" Shintaro asks.

"Of course," I reply, "I have to keep myself amused somehow."

Shintaro sighs. "You've always been bored too easily." He pushes his glasses up. "In anycase, it seems that you've had a decent day."

"Talking about Oha Asa?" I ask. I'm a Gemini, so apparently, my luck was supposed to be horrible today. "I saw it. I can't say that my luck has been particularly terrible today," I reply with a shrug.

"Hm," Shintaro replies. I'm not a non-believer, per say, but I don't take horoscopes nearly as seriously as he does.

I decide that it's about time to change the topic. "Anyways, Shintaro, what did you think of the match? Need I spend my time figuring out how to beat them next time?" I ask.

"Unfortunately, you will not be seeing them again this season," Shintaro replies rather confidently.

I fold my arms. "Oh? Well, if you say so, Shintaro. I'm not too sure about this myself, so I suppose that it would be unwise to bet about this one."

He sighs. "You and your games, Kimiko."

"EHH?! Since when are you two so close?!" Kise exclaims as he looks back and forth between the two of us. "Kimikocchi," he whines, "why don't you complain when Midorimacchi addresses you like that?"

"Shintaro and I have been friends since childhood," I reply. "It's only natural that I'd be alright with it, don't you think?" Kise seems upset about that. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask, it's been awhile since you called me and said you were on the way. Exactly how did you get here, Shintaro?"

"That would be thanks to me..." another guy wearing the same uniform as Shintaro replies between heavy breaths. He's riding a bicycle with a rickshaw in tow. "Your childhood friend is a jerk," he says.

I nod. "I'm aware."

He sighs and tries to catch his breath. "Anyways, how did Shin-kun manage to become friends with such a cute girl?" he asks.

"We were neighbors when we were kids," I reply. "I'll ignore that other comment," I add. "I'm not interested."

He smiles a little. "I think I get it now." He seems to think for a moment. "You and Shin-chan are so alike you'd probably be an interesting couple."

"Don't fool around," Shintaro and I reply at the same time. We turn to each other and for some reason, we know exactly what to do next without saying anything. Probably because we're so smiliar.

Shintaro begins, "We're not like that, so if you keep implying it..."

"We'll come up with a suitable punishment for you," I finish.

The guy's eyes widen a little. "Holy-" he beings. "Forget it, it's more like you're the same person!" He breaks out into laughter. "This is too good!"

I raise an eyebrow. "It's amazing that you get along with this one," I say to Shintaro.

"It's more of a master and servant type relationship," he replies.

I fold my arms. "I see. That's rather interesting. That rickshaw is pretty unique as well, Shintaro. It seems like it would be bumpy to ride in though."

Shintaro shakes his head. "It's not. If you'd like, I'll let you ride back home in it."

The other guy exclaims, "Hey, Shin-chan! Don't go offering rides to other people! I'm the one who has to carry all the weight!"

As I'm about to reply, Kise grabs my hand suddenly. "Kimikocchi and I are going to go. We have plans tonight," he cuts in.

"Wha-" I begin. "Kise!" I exclaim. He doesn't pay any attention to my protests and continues to drag me away. Seeing as resistance is futile, I shake my head and give in. I wave a bit to Shintaro, who looks utterly confused for a while. I think I catch him frowning.

Kise fumes the whole time as he drags me into the gym. "It kind of pisses me off that you were ignoring me back there," he grumbles.

"Hmmm?" I reply. _Was he getting jealous?_ I fold my arms. "I've got no obligation to pay attention to you though, Kise. You should focus more on winning nationals instead." Kise frowns. "In anycase, you should get changed. You're taking me to dinner, remember?" His expression lightens. "It doesn't really seem like a loss for you in this case though. I'll be sure to think of something better next time."

"Um, actually, could I treat you tomorrow, Kimikocchi? There's something that I want to do today," he says.

"Oh?" I reply. I nod. "That's fine with me. Since Shintaro's around, maybe I'll go somewhere with him instead," I reply. I pull my cellphone out. "I wonder-"

"N-Nevermind!" Kise exclaims. He takes my hand again. "Let's go!" He starts to drag me out the door.

"Kise," I start.

He stops walking and turns to me. "Yeah?"

"Would you mind changing first?"

"O-Oh... right..." he says with a weak laugh. "Would you mind if I took care of something before dinner though?" he asks. "You can come with me too."

"Go ahead," I reply with a shrug. "I'm not a needy person. I won't force you to do anything."

* * *

I quickly realize that Kise wants to speak to Kuroko. I guess he invited me along to prevent me from going to hang out with Shintaro. I put my headphones on and pull a book out from my bag. Whatever Kise wants to say to Kuroko isn't something I should listen in on. "Kimikocchi?" Kise asks. I just barely hear him. I take my headphones out.

"You're going to talk to Kuroko-san about something, aren't you?" I reply. "I won't listen. It's not my place to anyhow. Just let me know when you're done." He nods and I put my headphones back in. I read until Kise taps me and leads me to the park where I sit down on the bench next to him and continue to read.

* * *

When I happen to glance up again to see if Kise ditched me, I find that Kise, Kuroko, and Kagami are playing streetball against some thugs. There are three guys standing off to the side and watching them in awe, so I suppose that Kise and the others went to serve their own sort of justice to the thugs. I chuckle. It's kind of nice seeing the three of them playing basketball together. They look like they're having fun.

* * *

I smile a little when they get back. "I've never been too fond of being able to win so easily, but I suppose that completely destroying the opposing party has it's own charm too."

"K-Kimikocchi, you were watching the whole time?" Kise asks.

I laugh. "What are you so embarrassed about? I see you play basketball all the time. I'm the manager, remember?" I reply. "Besides, I only watched the last few minutes." I get the feeling that he wants me to praise him though. I sigh. "You're like a puppy begging for treats." I shake my head and sigh again. "You looked cool," I say.

His eyes widen for a moment and then he breaks out into a huge smile. "Really?"

"Sure."

He looks like he can't stop smiling. "Maybe today wasn't so bad after all." He beams at me. "We should get going, Kimikocchi!" He seems so happy all of a sudden, it's almost funny. He's like a little kid in that aspect.

"Alright, alright," I say with a sigh. I put my book back into my bag and pull my headphones out. I bow slightly to Kuroko and Kagami. "Well, until next time then. Shintaro says that we won't be seeing you again this season, but..." I shake my head. "Never mind, it's just a feeling I have." I follow Kise out of the park.

Kise turns around and says, "And don't think I've forgotten about my revenge, Kagamicchi! Don't lose the preliminaries!"

I chuckle. "'Kagamicchi', huh?" _He gained Kise's respect that quickly?_

"What?" Kise asks.

I shake my head. "Nothing," I reply. I laugh. "You don't even give me a chance to get bored, do you?"

"Is that a good thing?"

I nod. "It is."


End file.
